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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26444932">Different For Girls</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_only_education_worth_having/pseuds/the_only_education_worth_having'>the_only_education_worth_having</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>New Girl</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Crying, F/M, Flirting, Love, Past Love, Roommates, Song fic, break-ups, ladies night, past relationship, post-break ups</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 05:41:06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,430</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26444932</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_only_education_worth_having/pseuds/the_only_education_worth_having</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Nick and Reader navigate post-breakup life</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Nick Miller/Reader, Nick Miller/You</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>16</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Different For Girls</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>I padded through the hall bleary-eyed. It was 4 am and the loft was in total darkness so my trip to the bathroom was more of a shuffle and feel along the wall than walking. I peed with the light off trying to keep myself sleepy before making my way back to my room. As I got put my hand on my door I was suddenly back lit from the door across the hall. I turned to spot a tall blonde lady sneaking out of Nick’s room backwards. When she turned she saw me frozen and watching her. </p><p>‘Oh,’ she said bashfully pulling her dress down self consciously, ‘sorry if I woke you.’<br/>‘Oh, um no,’ I stammered awkwardly, ‘I was up.’<br/>‘Okay well see ya,’ she said heading to the front door. I stayed stunned by my door as she turned and said, ‘hey, maybe don’t tell Nick about this?’ <br/>She ducked out before I could reply and I went into my room and climbed in bed shaken and hurt. Nick and I had split up just over a month ago and this was the first time I’d seen him with anyone else. I couldn’t decide whether it was worse that it was just a one night stand and not something more. And I couldn’t pin point whether or not I was upset he hadn’t come and spoke to me about it though Nick was never one for feelings. I couldn’t sleep after that. I lay in bed with thoughts spinning around my head. Was this the first time? Did Nick want to date so soon? Was I okay with it? </p><p>I lay awake for hours before my heavy eyes gave in and I fell asleep for a couple of hours. When I woke the house was up. It was a Saturday and the boys were sat in the kitchen eating breakfast and planning their day. I hovered in the hall silently listening to snippets of their conversation. . </p><p>‘You gotta come out tonight man,’ Schmidt pleaded to the other boys, ‘it’s ladies night and the ladies need us Nick!’ <br/>‘I don’t know,’ Nick said with uncertainty. <br/>‘Well I’m in,’ Coach said and I heard the sound of a high five. <br/>‘Me too,’ Winston agreed. <br/>‘C’mon man. What’s the issue?’ Coach said. The boys seemed to be oblivious to me standing there quietly, too enthralled in their plans. <br/>‘You need to get back on the horse,’ Schmidt said, ‘a supple 30 something horse.’<br/>‘Right, you and Y/N have been broken up for what a month? Time to get back out there,’ Coach said, all of them seemed to be as in the dark about Nick’s late night activities. <br/>‘Alright, alright,’ Nick grumbled making my heart sink, ‘I’ll go.’<br/>Though Nick’s late night guest was an obvious sign he was moving on this felt more concrete in the path of our break up. I realised it was gonna happen no matter what but this just felt like more than I was ready for. I rested back on the hallway table, knocking my purse off onto the floor with a clatter. The boy’s faces appeared one by one around the corner as I collected my things off of the floor, ‘what’re you doing?’ Nick asked with concern as if trying to figure out what I’d heard. </p><p>‘I was coming for breakfast but I needed something out of my bag,’ I lied, ‘you know me, butter fingers.’ There was a smattering of agreement as I wafted past them to the kitchen where I automatically went through the motions of making eggs as the boys conversation resumed to something else.<br/>‘So,’ I said as I let my eggs boil in the pan, ‘what are y’all doing tonight? I was thinking we could get take-out or something.’ <br/>‘Actually we’re going out. Ladies night,’ Schmidt proclaimed proudly. <br/>‘Oh that sounds like fun,’ I said with a tinge of sadness causing all four of them to look in various directions uncomfortably. <br/>‘Why don’t you come?’ Winston said causing the others to fluster as if they were trying to stop the words from coming out of his mouth. I looked at them. I didn’t know what to do. After all my options were go to the bar with my friends and ex boyfriend and watch them get with god knows who or sit at home on my own waiting for them to return imagining what was happening. Schmidt’s words to Nick about moving on echoed in my mind. He was right. Nick was obviously happy about moving on. Maybe if I showed him I was okay too he'd stop sneaking girls in in the dead of night. <br/>‘Ladies night,’ I said with fake enthusiasm, ‘free drinks, cute guys? I’m in.’<br/>‘You are?’ Nick said, his brown eyes watching my face carefully as I lied, ‘sure am.’ <br/>‘Well okay then! Loft night out!’ Schmidt shouted, accompanying it with fist pump. Tonight was going to be long.</p><p>I was in a tizz. I didn’t know what to wear, I’d tried on every outfit in my closet and none of them looked right. Jeans, blouses, skirts and dresses littered my bedroom floor before I opted for a simple silk red dress and strappy heels. I pulled my hair back in a simple up do and grabbed a small clutch before heading out into the living room. Schmidt and Winston were already there, Schmidt was pacing as he waited and Winston was sitting with Ferguson. </p><p>‘Woah,’ Winston said, ‘you look nice, right Ferguson?’<br/>‘Thanks,’ I smiled, smoothing out my dress. <br/>‘He’s right but you’ll look even nicer at the bar which we should already be at by now!’ he shouted, ‘the only hottie left will be you if we’re any later.’ <br/>‘Thanks Schmidt...I think,’ I said as Coach joined our party. As I rifled through my clutch looking for my mirror to touch up my lipstick Nick appeared in a pair of jeans and a button down that made him look much too cute. <br/>‘Wow, you look,’ he said gesturing vaguely at my form.<br/>‘You too,’ I said, sharing an awkward smile with him as Schmidt corralled us out of the door and down into a cab. </p><p>The bar was packed. Free entry and drinks for the girls had drawn in girls from all over and their male counterparts were there in double the proportion. We had to push to get to the bar and once I had socked my free drink I took a seat as the boys rapidly disappeared in every direction as they spotted a girl they liked. I sighed and took a seat at the bar, sipping my free cocktail whilst scrolling through my phone. Before long I was approached by a guy. He was tall, brunette and cute in a boyish way.</p><p>‘Hey,’ he said. His voice was gruff and gravelly, ‘drinking alone?’<br/>‘Yeah,’ I said, ‘but not if you want to join me?’ <br/>‘Definitely,’ he said sitting on the stool next to me. It took me a moment to get back into the swing of flirting but soon it came back. His name was Jack and he was nice, if not a little boring, and definitely cute. I was enjoying myself for the first time in a good while. Well, until I got up to go to the bathroom. I excused myself from Jack and made my way across the room to the back corridor where the bathrooms were. I pushed the swing door open to the corridor and stepped through passing a guy exiting as I went. </p><p>I had barely made it into the corridor when I spotted them. There was Nick with a girl pinned up against the wall kissing her passionately. Her hands were knotted in his hair as his mouth trailed her mouth, jaw and neck making her moan. She was tall and slim and gorgeous. My heart sunk. I ran into the female toilets and locked myself in a stall as I allowed the tears to flow freely down my cheeks ruining my makeup. It took me more than ten minutes to get myself together and when I came out of the stall I was met with a mirror which revealed how bad I now looked. I had streaks down my foundation which had pooled under my chin. My lipstick was smudged from my blowing my nose and my hair was a mess from running my fingers through it. I had to get out of here. There was no way I could explain this to Jack and if the boys saw me like this they’d only get worried. I opened the bathroom door a crack and checked to see if Nick was still there. Once I saw the coast was clear I slipped out and headed to the front of the bar and out the door thanking my lucky stars I didn’t run into any of the guys on my way out thanks to the volume of the crowd. </p><p>By the time I got home I was exhausted from crying. The emotion of the day hit me as soon as I was in the relative privacy of the cab and though I was sure my cab driver didn’t take any notice of me I couldn’t bring myself to think about being at all embarrassed. I sobbed pathetically in the back of the car for the full journey home and didn’t stop as I made my way through the building. As I got in my room I dumped my shoes with the pile of clothes, threw my bag on the floor and clambered onto my head still crying. After about an hour I was done. Though my heart was still heavy in my chest I was dried up from tears and so I slid up off of my bed to get undressed. I peeled my dress off and sat in my underwear before I wiped my makeup off with a wet wipe. I got most of it off but was left with remnants of black mascara under my eyes. I let my hair down and changed into my pyjamas before climbing back on my bed and scrolling through my phone. I lay there for a long time listening as one by one my roommates came home each accompanied by a suitor they’d met. At some point I fell asleep and awoke in the early hours of the morning, warm and sweating with a distinct fullness in my bladder. </p><p>I sighed and walked to the bathroom. As I finished I heard someone come into the bathroom and I came out of the stall to find Nick splashing cold water on his face and watching himself in the mirror. He looked up as I came out and went to wash my hands. </p><p>‘Hey,’ he said quietly. <br/>‘Hey,’ I murmured, washing my hands as quickly as I could. <br/>‘You disappeared tonight,’ he said though it was more a statement than a question.<br/>‘Yeah, I didn’t feel like it,’ I said, running my hands on a towel as I tried to leave as quickly as possible. I was just out the door when I heard him mumble, ‘looked like you were enjoying throwing yourself at that guy.’ </p><p>‘What?!’ I said irately as I turned round catching his face which seemed to have thought he’d gone unheard. <br/>‘I’m just saying you seemed to be enjoying yourself when you were all over that guy,’ he stated before folding his arms. <br/>‘Am I not allowed to flirt with a guy?’ <br/>‘Do what you want. What do I care,’ he said.<br/>‘You shouldn’t care. It’s nothing to do with you. Just like it’s nothing to do with me when you’re sneaking girls out of your room at 3 in the morning,’ I said. Nick’s face paled, ‘yeah I know. So don’t you dare be getting all high and mighty with me because I’m not gonna sit here and take it. Do you know how hard it is watching you move on? Not even that having to find out you’re moving on from the girl you’ve just banged talking to me as she sneaks out-’<br/>‘I’m sorry that’s how you found out but that’s not my fault! That’s just what guys do!’</p><p>‘Well it’s different for girls Nick! It’s different for me! Because I can’t just throw any old button-down on and jump into bed with the first rando I see. I have to suck myself into a tiny dress and heels so I don’t look pathetic. I have to flirt with a guy all night and hope he doesn’t think I’m easy if I want to go home with him. I also have to hope he’s not a murderer when he takes me home because I can’t come back here and tell him I live with my ex-boyfriend. I can’t tape my heart back together with beer and whiskey. I can’t let myself go because I don’t have that luxury!’</p><p>‘You think I wanna deal with my feelings this way? You think I wanna go out and trawl bars for someone that doesn't make me feel miserable for five minutes a day? You think this is easy for me too? Well it’s not Y/N. It’s freaking hard.’ <br/>‘Well why don’t you just tell me that! Instead of hiding it from me!’<br/>‘What am I supposed to say Y/N? I miss you. I can’t believe how much not being with you hurts me? That seeing you looking gorgeous tonight and flirting with that guy was like a punch in the gut? Is that supposed to help? Is that supposed to make everything feel better? Because it doesn't because we’re still broken up and I’m still miserable.’ </p><p>With that he stormed past me leaving me standing in the doorway, my head spinning from his little speech. I came to as I heard his door slam and I realised more tears were rolling down my cheeks. I walked down to my room but froze as I reached for the handle. Without thinking I turned around and went across the hall to Nick’s door and opened his door gently. He was laying in his bed alone staring at the ceiling though he looked up when I came in.</p><p>‘Y/N-’ he started but I didn’t say anything. I walked to his bed and climbed in beside him which he shuffled to accommodate me. There wasn’t much I could do to make us feel better but this helped. We lay there for a good while in silence until we fell asleep.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Song Fic<br/>Dierks Bentley - Different for Girls</p></blockquote></div></div>
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